Bills to prevent local capture of taxes intended for Detroit Zoo, Detroit Institute of Arts signed into law

DETROIT, MI -- Lt. Gov. Brian Calley on Tuesday signed legislation protecting tax money intended for the Detroit Zoo and the Detroit Institute of Arts from being swiped by local communities.

Several Wayne County communities for years have been capturing portions of zoo millage funds for use by their downtown development authorities, collecting it total some $800,000 since voters approved a tri-county zoo tax in 2008.

Voters throughout the region approved a new millage to support the DIA last year.

Officials in the Detroit suburbs that were capturing some of the millage funds insisted it was a legal and necessary tactic to maintain their downtown areas.

State lawmakers in response passed a series of bills to ensure that 100 percent of millage funds now go directly to their intended purpose.

“Voters approved millages to support these cultural icons, and these bills guarantee that the voice of the voters in southeast Michigan is not only heard, but followed,” Calley said in a statement.

Calley is filling in for Gov. Rick Snyder, who is in Israel trying to lure investors to Michigan.

He signed House Bills 4458, 4461, 4463 and 4464, each prohibiting local entities from capturing regional property taxes meant to subsidize the Detroit Zoo and the Detroit Institute for the Arts.

He said three more related bills, HBs 4459, 4460 and 4462, will also be signed once they reach the governor’s desk.